Nashville Artists Affected by Floods

Dierks Bentley, Jo Dee Messina and Julie Roberts are among those in the Middle Tennessee area dealing with the aftermath of weekend flooding. Some areas in and around Nashville got more than 15 inches of rain over the course of two days.

Dierks Bentley posted a photo on Twitter of himself in his basement, where he is shown holding a bucket and trying to disperse some of the water that had gotten inside the basement of his home. He also said in a statement that the Knoxville, Tenn., and Charlottesville, Va., dates for his Up on the Ridge Tour have been cancelled. "For the safety of my band, crew and their families back here in Nashville, we are parking the buses and not going to try and attempt the trip east." Dierks later tweeted, "Hate to cancel shows . . . might be a first, but Nashville is a disaster. All of our houses are messed up."

Jo Dee Messina arrived home in Nashville from Chicago on Sunday to a home with water standing at least five feet deep. "Landed to a flooded Nashville," Jo Dee tweeted. "[Band member] Robby's wife just got pulled from her car in water. Their car is gone, [but] she is safe. Thank God. Trying to get home." After borrowing a pump from a neighbor, Jo Dee later tweeted, "It seems like we've been pumping water all night just to keep it from rising. It hasn't gone down any." They are unsure of the next step, but Jo Dee tweeted, "Family is safe. That's most important."

Julie Roberts ("Break Down Here") also took to her Facebook to update fans on her situation. The first floor of her Nashville-area home was flooded, leaving her and her family without electricity. She and her family had to be rescued by boat. "I wanted to let everyone know that my family and I (pets included) are safe. Its been very difficult," Julie posted. "I have very limited internet access at the moment so I will try to keep you updated through my management. Thank you all for your prayers. Looks like our entire first floor and 3 cars are gone but I will know more . . . later. Please continue to keep my family and all families involved in this flood in your prayers."

Other artists tweeted and sent their thoughts to the Nashville community:

“We are very concerned for our town, but are also extremely proud of the selflessness and generosity shown by our wonderful citizens. We truly live in a special community.” The McGraw Family (Tim McGraw and Faith Hill)

Brad Paisley, who lives south of Nashville in one of the harder hit areas, kept his humor about him, tweeting that he saw “two giraffes, two elephants and two rhinos walking down the street toward a HUGE boat. Thinking about following them.”

Artists like Lady Antebellum, Kenny Chesney and Sara Evans have encouraged people to donate to the American Red Cross.

Our prayers go out to everyone in Nashville and the surrounding areas.